Don’t ignore townspeople

May 06, 2009 12:44 am

— THE ISSUE:Galveston’s appearance.
OUR VIEW:The town council cannot dismiss residents’ grievances of unkempt property.
More than 200 people attended a town council meeting in Galveston Monday.
The Census Bureau says 1,532 people live in the town. If nearly every meeting-goer was a resident, about 13 percent of the population was in attendance.
We anticipated this would happen.
For three straight months, residents have complained to their town councilmen of abandoned structures and unkempt property. And they’re particularly unhappy about junk spilling onto the sidewalk from Councilman John Zook’s place.
Glenda Cree told the council several residents contacted the Cass County assessor, asking that their property taxes be reduced because of the appearance of the town.
She asked the council to work with the community to clean up Galveston.
“We can’t do anything if you’re not receptive,” Cree said.
Business owner Bruce Moss urged the council to join the Logansport and Cass County plan commission. He and others at the meeting believe the affiliation would help the town quickly and more efficiently address blight.
“Don’t take it under advisement so it will be forgotten about,” he said. “Put it on the agenda for discussion at the next meeting.”
Galveston residents first petitioned the council last year to enforce town ordinances. Their requests have been ignored.
Councilmen no longer can dismiss these grievances. Residents won’t stand for it.
They’ll keep pouring into council meetings until the town is cleaned up.
Offerings puzzle readers
Tuesday, we inadvertently omitted our puzzles from the classified section.
Our phones rang all day. (You’ll find Tuesday’s and today’s puzzles inside.) During our chats with readers, suggestions were offered.
Several readers said they dislike the new crossword puzzle. They say it’s too difficult and makes too many references to pop culture, about which they know little.
Many others said the Sudoku is too small. They have difficulty penciling in more than one number in a box, as they try solving the puzzle.
If you count yourself among either group, please give this format a try this week. If you still can’t live with it by Monday, contact Jeff Kovaleski at (765) 454-8590 or jeff.kovaleski@kokomotribune.com.